United
by xxskyWriterxx
Summary: When the Rowdyruff Boys turn up with mysterious injuries, the Powerpuff Girls come to the aid their masculine counterparts. This was my first published fanfic, so it's a bit dated. OLD
1. Punishments

United

The city of Townsville…

It was a quiet spring afternoon. The sky was crystal clear and as blue as the shining bay waters. The birds chirped and it was very peaceful. The hum of traffic echoed through the city streets and floated around. It was a kind of day that the Powerpuff Girls loved after a hard week of crime fighting. They could play at their house, or at the park, or just spend some family time with Professor Utonium. On this particular day, Buttercup practiced punching the stuffing out of her punching bag. Bubbles drew pretty pictures of butterflies with her new box of crayons. Blossom brushed up on her conversational Chinese. Yes, everyone in Townsville was enjoying the peaceful, crime free day. (These are pretty rare in Townsville) Everyone except….

THE ROWDYRUFF BOYS! Brick and his brothers sulked in the allies of downtown, stomping through the shadows and despising the day. Butch grumbled.

"This is so darn boring!! I hate days like this!! There's nothing to do!" He ripped out some of his spiky, jet black hair and kicked the wall of a nearby Laundromat.

"I know…" Brick grumbled, twirling some of his long red hair around his hand. "I wish we could think of something interesting to do."

Boomer blinked stupidly.

"What are we talking about?"

Brick gave him the evil eye and slapped him across the face. Boomer rubbed his stinging cheek and glared back.

"I was just **asking**!" he pouted. Brick slapped his hand over Boomer's mouth.

"Shut up, barf bag!"

Butch started to twitch and bounce impatiently.

"I want sugar! Sugar, sugar, SUGAR!" he chanted. Brick took his hand off Boomer's mouth and smirked.

"Not a bad idea!" he said. "I'm getting' kinda hungry too."

Without another word, the three brothers took off for their favorite ice cream shop, Baskin Robbins, Butch chanting: "ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, ICE CREAM!!" all the way.

Meanwhile at the Powerpuff Girls' house….

"Will you stop punching that stupid bag for a few seconds!" Blossom scolded. "I'm trying to study my conversational Chinese!"

Buttercup stuck out her tongue, counted out 4 seconds, then started punching her bag again. Blossom whirled around, her rose colored eyes scorching.

"**What** did I just say?!!"

"Beats me. You weren't listening either?"

Bubbles was stretched out on the carpet, very used to her sisters' bickering. She was humming to herself and cheerfully coloring her butterfly drawing purple.

"Coloring, coloring, coloring…I love coloring!" she sang happily. "Look guys! I drawed a pretty butterfly!"

"SHUT UP!!" Buttercup hollered, wrestling with Blossom at the same time. At first, Bubbles just stood there, still as a statue. Then she exploded, tears streaming from her eyes like she was a fountain.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"I said SHUT UP, not SCREAM AT THE TOP OF YOUR STUPID LUNGS!" Buttercup growled.

"Stop it, **both** of you!" Blossom screeched.

Then another sound added to the ruckus of the room. The Hotline started to buzz. Blossom groaned loudly.

At Baskin Robbins…

Butch was twitching like a 9.0 earthquake while he stuffed his face with triple fudge ice cream.

"FUDGE!!!!!" he screamed. Brick punched all the people out of the shop, then began to gulp down some chocolate ice cream with caramel and peanut butter cups. Boomer was already stuffing as much _dulce de leche_ ice cream as he could fit, into his mouth. People ran screaming from the shop as fast as their legs could take them. Then, three familiar colored streaks, pink, green, and blue, zipped through the sky and towards the scene of the action. Blossom activated her x-ray vision and quickly scanned the building. She let out a sigh.

"It's the Rowdyruff Boys." she reported. "I was beginning to think they would leave us alone this week."

"It's about time we destroyed those stupid punks." Buttercup snarled. "We destroyed them once, but then they get brought back by Him, and here they are again."

"For once I agree with you." Blossom said. "I'm tired of all their brainless crimes."

"Me too!" Bubbles sang.

"This time we're putting an end to their antics for all." Blossom said, before she and her sisters burst through the wall of Baskin Robbins. Brick snorted when he saw them.

"Well, isn't it the…"

Blossom rammed him into the wall before he could finish his sentence. The blow knocked the breath out of him, and he winced as a sharp pain stabbed his side. Blossom had never punched him this hard before. He countered the attack with a kick, but Blossom dodged it and slammed him into the counter, the glass slicing through his stomach. He let out a cry and tried to zap Blossom with his eye beams, but she dodged it again and socked him in the jaw, bringing him down to his knees. He held his stomach and felt the warm blood run over his hands. Growling like a wild animal, he aimed a punch at Blossom, but she grabbed his wrist and slammed him headfirst, violently onto the hard tile floor. Brick tried to hold his ground, but her abnormally strong attacks were weakening him fast.

Brick's brothers weren't doing any better against their counterparts. Boomer let out a squeal as Bubbles sent him flying into a row of metal bar stools, in a flash of blue. Butch grunted as Buttercup landed a hard punch on his gut, knocking him through a door and the floor. The green eyed Puff smacked him across the face and kicked his chest, leaving him breathless and gasping for air. Bubbles' sky blue eyes shone vividly as she twirled Boomer over her head like a lasso and hurtled him into the ceiling with a crash.

"Energy blast!!" Blossom ordered, her long red ponytail flying behind her. She and her sisters touched hands, sending a blinding white blast of energy at the boys. They screamed in agony as it hit them straight on. Then they crashed into the ground in streaks of flaming red, navy blue, and forest green. There they lay, battered and motionless.

"They're down!" Blossom shouted excitedly. "One more blast might finish them off!"

The three superpowered sisters joined hands in a circle, and began to spin blindingly fast, charging up for their famous atomic twister. Down on the ground, Brick stared at the girls, his head spinning and throbbing with pain. Seeing the intensity in their move, he knew he and his brothers wouldn't make it if they were hit.

"Idiots!!' he screamed at his brothers. "Get up! Those dumb girls are gonna whip us into pulp! MOVE!"

The limp forms of brothers just lay there like rag dolls, if you ignored Butch's twitching. Brick groaned angrily and struggled to pull himself out of the crater in the ground, but his body ached in exhaustion and he collapsed back down. His blood red eyes, half closed, weakly watched the blur of the Puffs, almost ready to perform their atomic twister. _This is the end,_ he thought. _Those girls are finally gonna destroy us. _Just as the girls were about to unleash the fury of their atomic twister, the cerulean Townsville sky faded into a flaming red, and red clouds formed, and began to swirl. Out of the swirling clouds, the father of the Rowdyruff Boys, Him, appeared. He sent the girls flying into the ground with a wave of his claw, and with another wave, he enveloped his battered sons in red smoke, and they vanished.

"Those stupid little **brats**!" Him hissed, his eyes flashing viciously. "They barely escaped destruction **again**, only by **my** superior offensive tactics! Well, it's about time I gave them a little **chat**."

Him vaporized into the air in another red swirl of clouds, chuckling evilly while he traveled to his home in Hell.

*****************************************************************

It was dark. All Brick felt was pain. It coursed through his beat-up body like a fiery snake, burning him to cinders. He groaned and tried to open his eyes, but they felt as heavy as cement blocks. _Am I dead?_ He thought. _The girls destroyed me, I know they did._ As he lay there, in the mercy of darkness and agony, he thought he heard something rustling. Suddenly his body was enveloped in burning pain, tearing mercilessly through his flesh and setting his bones on fire. He howled in agony, his body writhing like a snake. Cries from his brothers pierced though the air as well. Then, as suddenly as it came, the pain was gone, leaving Brick limp and gasping, his scarlet eyes wide open in horror. He could see that he was in his father's domain, his brothers on the ground on either side of him. Him stood in front of his horrified sons, towering over them, his eyes glowing as he grinned evilly. He waved his claw, and an invisible force lifted the boys to their feet, leaving them fully restored in physical condition.

"Hello, my dear boys!" Him sneered. "You know, it's time I had a little chat with you, hmmm?"

"What do you want?" Butch growled. Brick shook his head at Butch furiously. Their father was the one person the boys didn't pick fights with. In a flash, Him was beside his emerald eyed son, hanging dangerously close and stroking his spiky black hair. Butch froze in horror as a red claw closed on his wrist and pulled him closer to his dad's face.

"Do you have any idea why I might be, **displeased **with you and your brothers? Any thoughts at all?" Him asked in his creepy feminine voice. Butch whimpered, trying to slide his hand out of the claw.

"Let go of me." he said softly. Him pulled Butch's face closer and he struggled harder.

"**No**!" Him screeched into his son's face, then slammed him face first into the ground, finally releasing his wrist. "You **dimwitted** fool! Why did I **ever** bring you and your stupid jerks of brothers back into existence?! You **deserved** to be destroyed! You are **worthless**!"

"We was doing everything you wanted!" Boomer interrupted. His father turned to him furiously and zapped him with his eye lasers, and the small blond boy squealed in anguish.

"You were **not** doing everything I wanted, you pathetic **brats**!" Him hollered. "I instructed you to destroy those meddling Powerpuffs, **not** rob the Baskin Robbins!"

Him stopped pounding Boomer into the ground and suddenly grabbed Brick's chin and turned his face to face him.

"And you, **you** were supposed to be leading those boneheads on **my** orders, not approving of their childish antics!" he screeched in fury. Brick made an effort to free his head, but his father whipped his face with his claw and flung him into the ground. Brick gritted his teeth and stood up, his cheek cut and bleeding. His father knocked him back into the ground with a single blow, and continued to relentlessly pummel him and his brothers.

Meanwhile, the Powerpuff Girls were flying back toward their house, very angry at their close failure in destroying the Rowdyruff Boys.

"I can't believe it!!" Buttercup burst out. "We were so close! But they escaped by a hair! AGAIN! Those stupid, rotten, good for nothing twerps!"

"I know…" Blossom replied. "But we **will** destroy them eventually. I know we will."

"Yeah!" Bubbles agreed. "We'll get them and blow them up like the first time!"

Blossom nodded determinedly at her blond pigtailed sister. She knew they would win ultimately. They always did. The three girls flew on in silence. Bubbles tried to find pictures in the clouds, Buttercup fumed about the Rowdyruff Boys, and Blossom began to mentally plan what attacks she and her sisters would use next time they ran into the boys. Then, Buttercup's super keen superhearing picked up a faint moan from across the town. _A distress cry?_ She thought. The black haired Puff paused in midair and put her hand to the side of her head, listening carefully.

"Buttercup?" Blossom paused and turned toward her sister.

"Be quiet! I'm listening." Buttercup's face was determined. Then there it came again, the soft cry, traveling from across town. "Blossom, I hear something!"

"Someone's in trouble?" Blossom exclaimed.

"I think so."

"C'mon girls, let's go check it out." Blossom ordered. She and her sisters set off across town in a flash of blue, pink and green. They scanned the familiar Townsville streets carefully, looking for any signs of trouble. Blossom squinted determinedly. No bad guy was going to escape her again. Suddenly, Bubbles gasped, her pastel blue eyes wide. Her sisters looked at her, puzzled. Soundlessly, she just pointed at the roof of a nearby building.

"Holy…" Buttercup said softly.

***************

_What did you think? Love it? Hate it? This is my first fic, so be gentle please!_ -CrystalBlossomx


	2. Sympathy

Three, small battered bodies lay motionless on top of the building.

"Oh my gosh!' Blossom exclaimed. "It's the Rowdyruff Boys!"

Indeed it was. The three brothers lay, facedown, nearly beaten to death. The girls were astonished, and they flew down to investigate. The boys' hair was disheveled, their clothes were torn, and they were bruised and bleeding all over. Bubbles turned over her counterpart and felt a rush of sympathy when she saw his face. One of his deep blue eyes was swollen shut, a tooth was knocked clean out of his mouth, and his cheek was swollen. His face was also covered with assorted bruises and cuts, as well as coated with grime. Bubbles didn't understand her feelings of compassion towards the boy; he was her sworn enemy and had tried to take her life before; more than twice. She and her sisters had even sworn to do the same to him and his brothers only a few minutes ago. But as she scanned his beaten, unconscious body, she didn't feel any hatred towards him. Almost horrified by her own reactions, Bubbles quickly turned away from Boomer to face Blossom, who was gaping at Brick's bleeding face and mouth.

"Blossom, what happened to them?" she asked her sister. Blossom shook her head.

"I don't know." She replied. "Whoever beat them up sure got them good."

"Wow…." Buttercup marveled at a huge plum colored bruise that crossed Butch's chest, that was exposed by a big tear in his shirt. "I wish I could punch like this!"

Just then, the boys began to stir. The girls stood like statues as the eyes of their counterparts opened. At first, the three brothers looked around in surprise. Then their eyes widened to the size of moons when they saw the girls standing there. Brick quickly rearranged his horrified face into a tough one, and he tried to wipe the blood from his face; it was the same color as his eyes. He got to his feet gingerly, breathing heavily and glowering at Blossom.

"You leave us **alone**…" he said spat painfully, shaking his fist in Blossom's face. "Don't you dare try to… or…"

Blossom just stared at him.

"We weren't going to…"

"Shut up!" Brick's blood red eyes flashed angrily. Buttercup took a defensive step forward and all three boys stepped back. Butch glared at her. Bubbles was just standing there, speechless. She looked at Boomer, who was now doing his best to imitate his brothers' roughness. The feelings of sympathy flooded through her again as she watched him tremble while he stood. She lost herself in his deep sapphire eyes, wondering what was causing these feelings. _Am I crazy?!" _she thought frantically. _He tried to kill me! Me __**and**__ my sisters! More than once! _But, being the kindhearted little girl she was, this didn't stop her from looking at her battered counterpart with pity. Finally she could stand it no longer. While her sisters argued with their counterparts, Bubbles dug through her pocket silently. Boomer, who was soundless himself, noticed and began to cower away, expecting her to draw some kind of weapon and turn it on him. He stared at her while she began to pull something out of her pocket. The blond boy felt as if he had been frozen solid in terror. He threw up his hands for protection, fell to his knees, and then sneaked a peek at Bubbles. She was looking at him with a funny expression on her face; in her hand was a powder blue embroidered handkerchief.

"Here…" she whispered to him, lodging the handkerchief into his hand. Boomer stared at it, stunned.

"Why… why'd you give **this** to **me**??" he asked. Bubbles shrugged.

"Your face is dirty."

Boomer slowly and carefully wiped the grime off his cheeks, continuing to stare at Bubbles. He was so shocked he could barely think, but one question echoed through his mind: _Why?? _

"Yo, Boomer!" Brick's voice broke his train of thought. Boomer may have not been the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he was sensible enough to shove the handkerchief into his shirt before his brother saw it. "We're ditching this joint."

"Wait!" Blossom interrupted. She, like Bubbles, had felt some compassion towards the boys. "Maybe…"

"F…Forget it." Brick snapped at her before he and brothers took off. Blossom watched the three brothers zoom off, rather slowly and gingerly considering their injuries. The wind blew her long hair around like a superhero cape as she studied the small, red eyed boy flying away, blood still tricking from the corner of his mouth. She almost felt sorry for him.

"Blossom," Buttercup broke the silence. "C'mon, let's go home. I want to go beat the stuffing out of that punching bag some more."

"All right…" the pink Puff replied. "Let's go, girls."

As the girls zipped into the sky in their usual formation, they were all trying to deal with their strange new feelings toward the boys. (Yes, even Buttercup) They didn't understand them. They didn't make sense. _What is __**wrong**__ with us??_

The next day…

Butch and his brothers were hanging out at Townsville harbor. Their wounds were almost healed, due to their Chemical X healing powers. Butch, just as crazy and energetic as ever, was skipping stones across the water. Since he had superpowers, his stones skimmed over the surface of the water at speeds that were faster than some people who were racing speedboats out on the bay. They stared in astonishment as the stones passed their boats. Boomer was watching Butch skip his stones, but his mind was on the handkerchief stuffed in his shirt. Brick was pacing back and forth, frantically trying to think of a plan. His face suddenly lit up with a potential idea, but it slipped away as fast as Butch's stones, that were making really annoying zipping noises as they flew across the water. Brick groaned and tugged angrily at his hair.

"Dammit, Butch, that was the THIRD idea you made me forget!!"

"Slippery little devils." Butch replied sarcastically, flinging another stone across the water with an even louder zipping noise.

"SHUT YOUR PIEHOLE!!" Brick hollered. "Do you **want** Dad to pound us to death?! I know he won't stop at dancing on our graves if we don't destroy those Powerpuff Girls soon!"

Brick punched Butch in the back, sending him flying into the harbor with a splash. Brick glowered at his emerald eyed brother when he resurfaced, spluttering and gasping. Butch growled at his redheaded brother furiously, but a threatening shake of the red Ruff's fist silenced him. Butch pulled himself out of the water and plopped onto the ground next to Boomer, with a scowl on his face that looked capable of melting steel. Brick ignored him and turned to Boomer, who sat unusually silent and lost looking.

"What's with you, Blondie? Most of the time I can't get you to shut up."

Boomer's hand immediately moved toward the handkerchief in his shirt, but he continued the movement by scratching his head innocently.

"I dunno…I don't gots nothing to say… I guess…" he replied.

"It's an improvement." Brick said. "It's better than bugging the heck out of me when I'm trying to come up with the plan to save our lives." He sent another nasty look at Butch who shot it right back at him.

A while later… Brick couldn't come up with any plans, so he and his brothers stopped by at a burger place to steal a few for lunch. Boomer grabbed packets of mayonnaise and squirted them into his mouth, then followed that with three burgers at once. Brick stuffed his face with French fries, which in his opinion were even better than the actual burgers. He liked to squeeze them in his fist and see how much grease he could get to drip out. Butch and Boomer started a contest to see who could stuff the most burgers in their mouth at once. A few minutes later, the ceiling crumbled and three streaks zipped in: pink, green, and blue. The Rowdyruff Boys were completely taken by surprise.

"Oh, crap, there's the girls!" Butch exclaimed. "Got any bright ideas, leader boy?"

"Nope…" Brick replied. "So I say we fight our hardest and just blast 'em. C'mon Boomer."

As soon as the three Puffs saw the three Ruffs, they charged into attack. Buttercup slammed into Butch with horrific force; he let a squeal and went flying into the wall. Boomer managed to dodge Bubbles and tried to counterattack with a kick, but missed. Bubbles attempted a punch and it hit Boomer's stomach, sending him crashing into the rows of tables. Brick swiftly leapt out of way of Blossom's charge and kicked her in the leg, knocking her off balance. He tried for a punch, but Blossom seized his arm and flung him into the wall. He then hurled himself off the wall, trying to pounce on her, but she kicked his stomach and knocked him to the ground.

The fighting continued, both sides suffering blows. Neither of them seemed to be winning. Both sides were equally matched. With the boys and girls both fighting their hardest, neither side could gain a winning lead. The Ruffs and the Puffs were steadily getting worn out, and they both wanted the battle to end.

Though both his brothers' minds were totally involved in the fight, Boomer's mind was somewhere else; on a certain embroidered handkerchief in his shirt. He still didn't understand why Bubbles gave it to him. While he puzzled on this subject, he was just mindlessly throwing punches and kicks in random places, some of them multiple feet from hitting Bubbles. _Why'd she give it to me??_ was the question that kept spinning through his head. Bubbles was puzzled at his mindless attempts to hit her, most of them not even close. But she knew that he wasn't the brightest bulb ever, so she continued to fight her hardest. One of her hardest punches suddenly struck Boomer in the gut with shattering strength. Boomer squealed in pain, doubled over, and fell toward the ground. Bubbles followed him down in a flash of blue, and continued to pummel him. Boomer screamed as he was pounded all over with bursts of pain that shook him violently. Both his brothers noticed his continuous cries of pain, so they paused to stare at him.

"Boomer…" Brick said. "What..?"

Blossom saw her opportunity and rammed into him while he was distracted. Buttercup did the same with butch, and both boys sailed into the ground with a crash and a cloud of dust.

"Energy blast!" Blossom ordered, and the bolt of energy hit the boys dead on, causing them to scream in agony. The girls followed with countless team attack after team attack, keeping the boys on the ground. One of the girls' atomic twisters knocked all three boys senseless.

"We've got them! We've got them!" Blossom shouted in triumph. "One more blast should do it!"

The girls determinedly joined in a circle for another atomic twister, but a sudden mind blowing force knocked them completely out of the air, sending them smashing into the ground. The last thing they saw before losing consciousness completely was a certain devil- like villain with creepily feminine characteristics flying through the ceiling of the burger place, carrying his three little sons with him.

"Dammit…" Buttercup murmured before she slipped into darkness.

Back in his lair, Him's insides were burning with rage. He looked down at his three little sons, battered and unconscious just like the last time he had rescued them. _Those pathetic little_ _**fools**__!_ He thought furiously. _Are they not capable of destroying three pathetic little 6 –year- old girls?! This will be the last time those little brats they fail me._

He glowered down at his sons, then with a flick of his claw, all three of them were screaming and writhing in agony as the fiery pain ripped through their bodies. Once they were all awake, panting and staring, his bent over them, shooting them his most livid glares. Brick's heart nearly stopped. _We failed…_ he thought in horror. _Again. _He just stared at his father's enraged face, enveloped with dread.

"Well, my **dear** sons…" Him snapped, his eyes literally aflame with fury. "It seems you have failed… **AGAIN!!**"

"No…" Brick murmured in terror. His brothers just sat and stared, too shocked to speak.

Him seized the front of Brick's shirt and pulled him close, so the red eyed Ruff was millimeters from his face.

"I thought I had made myself clear the **last** time!!" he shrieked, blowing Brick's cap off as he covered the sides of his head and stared in horror. Butch and Boomer trembled like leaves.

"But you dimwits seem too **immature** and **empty headed** to get the picture!!" Him continued. He slashed Brick's face with fury and then slammed him into the ground with blinding speed. Brick's crimson eyes still stared in panic as blood oozed from the deep cuts on his cheeks and forehead and trickled down his face. Then Him threw a deadly powerful punch that hit Brick right in the gut with a sickening crunch. Brick doubled over in agony and clutched his ribs, letting out bloodcurdling shrieks that tore through his brothers like physical pain. Boomer felt his eyes fill with tears; he had never seen his brother in so much pain before. As the redheaded boy lay on the ground writhing in pain, Him turned on his other two sons.

He grabbed Butch's ankle with his claw and began slamming him over and over again on the ground with unbelievable force. Then he held the black haired boy by his collar and struck him repeatedly on the backside; Butch hollered in pain as he was pummeled again and again. Boomer, who was still cowering on the ground, could not hold in his tears any longer. He tried to muffle it by covering his mouth with his fists, but he still gave a perfectly audible sob. Him flung Butch through the air like a softball, then whirled around to face the terrified blonde boy, who quickly began to try to wipe the hot tears away. Him caught Boomer's waist in his claw and shook him mercilessly.

"You worthless little **coward**!!!" Him shrieked. "Super villains do not **bawl** like little **infants**! You disgust even **more** than your pathetic brothers!"

Boomer trembled in panic and screamed as his father began to beat him like you would beat a fly with a flyswatter.

A little while later, Him was finally finished torturing his sons. The three brothers looked more dead than alive. Butch had broken both his legs, had a huge bruise on his head, as well as various other cuts and bumps. He lay next to Brick, whose face was still all sliced open. He was missing his cap and holding his broken ribs, while coughing up blood at the same time. Boomer was battered just the same, except that his side was slashed open and he was extremely dizzy from being slammed on the head one too many times. Him stood triumphantly over his three battered sons, smirking down at them cruelly. Then he pulled out a small vial of red bubbling liquid.

"I was saving this Antidote X for the Powerpuff Girls," he said, shaking the vial. "..but using it on you seems much more appealing right now."

He opened the little glass container and dripped some Antidote X on each boy. They moaned as they felt their superpowers drain away.

"I'll just leave you in Townsville without your powers for … about a month seems fair. If you're still around then, I'll give you your powers back and I'll expect you to return to me. But the Powerpuff girls can **destroy** you three for all I care…"

He swept his claw over the boys, and they vanished in a cloud of scarlet smoke.

Meanwhile….the Powerpuff Girls were practically beating themselves up for their repeated close failure to destroy the boys. Since Buttercup was destroying the wall by banging her head against it, the girls decided to fly around town to let off some steam.

"Look!" Bubbles exclaimed. "It's the boys again! Down there!"

They were there all right, still battered and lying, barely conscious, on the grass in Townsville Park. The girls zoomed down and landed next to them, amazed by how much they were hurt; even more than last time. Blossom looked curiously down at Brick.

"Guys," she said. "The boys don't have their powers! They must have lost them somehow! Back at home, Professor's Chemical X detector recognized us as the only Chemical X beings in town!"

"Even better!" Buttercup replied. "Easier to finish these stupid idiots off."

She aimed a punch towards Butch's head. He stared at her fist in horror as it came closer and closer to his skull. Without his superpowers, the impact would certainly split open his head and kill him. He let out a moan of panic as Boomer and Brick stared at him in terror, about to see the demise of their brother.


	3. Connections

"Stop!" Blossom's voice broke the terrified silence. She aimed a punch that knocked Buttercup's hand away from Butch. Everyone stared at the redheaded Puff with the same mystified expression. Buttercup's mouth literally hung open in bewilderment. Butch's eyes were wide and frightened, like a deer's eyes caught in the headlights of a car.

"Blossom, what…?" Buttercup stammered. "I just… they're…you know…"

"They're evil meanies!" Bubbles broke in.

"I know…" Blossom replied. "But we can't kill them."

"What do you **mean** we can't kill them?!" Buttercup hollered. "Of course we can! They're wimps without their powers! And they're already beaten up! Didn't you swear not too long ago that we were gonna finally **destroy** these doofoids?!"

Blossom slowly shook her head.

"That was then. Now is now, Buttercup. Look at them, just **look** at them! They're practically beaten to death and stranded without their superpowers in this state! Would you want someone to annihilate **us** if **we** were in this situation?!"

"Of course not!!" Buttercup shouted. "But there's a difference! We're good guys, they're not! Think of how many times these jerks tried to **kill** us!"

"That's exactly the point." Blossom whispered to her black haired sister so the boys couldn't hear. "We can stop them from doing that ever again. If we help them, they might change. We could lose one of our main enemies and gain some strong allies."

"Blossom, they're **bad** guys. Stupid, lying, cheating, stealing bad guys whose life desire is to whip our butts across the galaxy. That's what they were created to do. You're really going to **trust** these creeps? I thought **you** were the smart and cautious one, not me."

"They can't do anything to us." Blossom pointed out. "They're seriously injured, not to mention powerless. If they decide to try anything funny, we'll stop them before they can take two steps. I think we should at least try to get them on our side."

"…Because you feel sorry for them." Bubbles interrupted. Blossom stared at her.

"How did you know that?"

Bubbles smiled.

"I feel the same way."

Blossom beamed at her blonde sister and turned to Buttercup.

"Don't you at least feel a **tiny** bit bad for them?"

Buttercup shyly diverted her gaze to stare at a passing jet.

"I take that as a "yes" in Buttercup language." Blossom said. The three girls broke up their huddle to face the boys, who shook on the ground like frightened animals. Even Buttercup's heart softened at the sight of them. The girls had never seen the boys act like this before. The Powerpuffs began to walk toward the boys, who tried to crawl away in fear, but their injuries prevented them. Blossom strode over to Brick and stood right next to him. The battered redheaded boy tried to scoot away, but he groaned in pain and held his broken ribs. Then he coughed, sending some blood trickling out of his swollen mouth.

"Stay…stay away from m…me…" the terrified Ruff leader stuttered, breathing deeply in fear. Blossom bent down and looked at him, her heart overflowing with sympathy she had never felt for her counterpart before. His wide, shocked eyes no longer looked like pools of blood to her, more like shining rubies. She began to reach for him, so she could pick him up and carry him away. He let out a cry of surprise as her arms caught hold of his midriff and hoisted him up.

"No no NOO!" he screamed, thrashing and struggling to get away. But his efforts only caused him to double over in pain and cough up more blood.

"Hold still…" Blossom said softly, trying to hold him gently against her body without hurting his ribs. He looked up at her in complete bafflement, his wide doe eyes staring.

"Only **you're** going to hurt yourself if you keep on wriggling around like that." Blossom continued.

"Wha…Why…?" Brick stuttered. Blossom just gave him an understanding look and took off for home, her sisters following right behind, also carrying their counterparts. As they flew, Brick dangled his legs calmly and felt the wind flutter his hair against his forehead, one pleasure he didn't experience too much because he was almost always wearing his baseball cap. A dull ache still burned in his body, especially his ribs, but it felt better, now that he was supported by Blossom's arms. He looked up curiously at Blossom.

"Are you going to…drop me?" he asked softly. Blossom chuckled a little.

"No." she replied. "Am I hurting you?"

"No…" the red Ruff answered. "It feels…" He stopped himself right there. "Why are you...? I'm your enemy… I mean…"

Blossom looked at him.

"You were hurt." She said.

He just stared at her, his wide ruby eyes as big as moons. She gave him a small smile in return.

The Rowdyruff Boys were in the Professor's lab. Professor had been more than a little surprised to see his daughters come up to him, holding their injured evil counterparts in their arms, but he agreed with Blossom's reasoning and helped the boys as best he could. Each boy had his own little white bed down in the lab, and all his wounds were properly taken care of. Brick's cuts that covered his face were covered with bandages, and he had a cast around his upper body to help his four broken ribs heal. Boomer had an ice pack on his head, as well as a bandage, and his badly cut side was stitched up. Both of Butch's broken legs were in casts, and all of his other cuts and bruises were treated appropriately. He even had a can of soda, his favorite beverage, which he was sipping happily. Brick was looking at the pictures in a book Blossom lent him, because he couldn't read very well and looking at all the words made him feel dumb. Boomer was playing with one of Bubbles' stuffed animals, a white unicorn. Brick glanced at his blonde brother, who was singing softly and making the unicorn soar through the air. He crossed his arms and shook his head. _Boomer will be Boomer... _the red haired Ruff thought.

"Hey, Boomer," Brick said; Boomer looked up from his game. "Did you ever think those girls would be so…**nice** to us?"

Boomer smiled brightly.

"Yeah."

Brick looked at him suspiciously.

"I got to show you something…" Boomer said excitedly. He stuck his hand inside his shirt and rummaged around, while both his brothers watched, confused. The blue eyed ruff pulled out Bubbles' handkerchief, held it up in the air, and waved it around.

"What's that little blue thing?" Butch asked.

"I dunno…" Boomer replied. "Bubbles gave it to me when we saw them last time, the first time after Daddy hurted us. I didn't know why; she said she gave it to me because my face was dirty. But I didn't understand. I thinked maybe she might be nice again!"

Boomer handed the little blue cloth to Brick, who turned it over and over in his hands, as well at holding it up close and sniffing it.

"It seems ok." He said, giving it back to Boomer, who smiled radiantly.

Hey, bro…" Butch said to his blond brother. "I've never seen you smile like that before. You feeling all right?"

"I'm ok." Boomer's eyes twinkled. "I feel good."

Butch smiled back at him, but Brick kept staring at the handkerchief, looking worried. Butch eyed him curiously.

"That hankie isn't gonna explode, you know." Butch said to his brother, who didn't answer. He shook his head slowly.

"I don't know if we can trust those girls." He said finally. "They want to kick our butts, remember? It isn't right for them to be so nice to us all of a sudden."

"It's kinda weird…" Boomer agreed. "But Bubbles was nice to me. I don't think they'll be mean."

Brick stared at the floor silently.

The next day…

Bubbles decided to visit the boys down in the lab. She skipped down the hall to the laboratory door, and swung it open with a creak. All three boys looked up, surprised to see Bubbles standing cheerily in the doorway. She smiled brightly.

"Hi guys!" she sang. "How are you doing?"

The boys looked at each other nervously.

"You're bored, huh?" Bubbles continued. "I hate being sick and having to stay in bed all the time. I get so bored that I want to scream and stuff! So I came to keep you company!"

"Uh…" Brick said uneasily. "It's ok… We're ok…"

Bubbles ignored him and zipped into the lab like a blue firework. She landed next to Boomer's bed and beamed at him cheerfully. He looked at her timidly. He was almost scared. But there was something in her, something that calmed him down and made him feel peaceful. He looked at her radiant grin and noticed how much it looked like his own smile. Butch and Brick noticed the resemblance as well, and they glanced nervously at each other. Bubbles didn't notice the boys' reaction to her at all; she continued to beam at Boomer.

"How are you today?" she asked brightly.

"I'm ok…I think…" the blonde Ruff answered shyly.

"That's good. I don't like when people get boo-boos. It makes me sad."

Boomer just stared at Bubbles and lost himself in her sparkling blue eyes. So much of her reminded him of himself, that he was almost stunned. Bubbles noticed that her counterpart was staring at her and she cocked her head curiously.

"Do I look funny?"

"No. You look like me."

Bubbles chuckled.

"Of course I do! You're my… uh… counter…something… Oh, I'm a dum-dum head! I forgot that word… I know Blossom told me once…"

Bubbles laughed at herself and turned to face Boomer again, who was still staring at her in awe.

"I'm so silly sometimes!" Bubbles continued. "I even make **myself** laugh! But sometimes my sisters call me mean names and I cry…" Bubbles asked Boomer in a panic, "You don't think I'm **too** silly, do you?"

Boomer shook his shaggy blonde head shyly.

"No." he said softly and truthfully. "You're just like me. My brothers maked fun of me too."

"Really?"

"Yeah…"

"I guess… we're a lot alike then…" Bubbles continued.

"Yeah…"

The two blondes sat in silence for a second. Bubbles sneaked some looks at Boomer, who had a far-away look on his face. She had never noticed how pretty his deep blue eyes were, like gleaming sapphires or the sea on a sunny day. She still thought he was sort of cute, just like that day when Him first brought the boys back. Boomer and his brothers had almost destroyed her then. She remembered how they had beaten her and her sisters; the slug in her dress, the game of roller brawl, and the ultimate fight game that the boys played. (This is all a reference to the episode: _The Boys are Back in Town_) Her recollection of those memories made her draw away from her sudden attraction she felt to Boomer. But as she looked at him, hurt and powerless, she smiled again. He needed her. She could feel it.

"I hope you get better soon." Bubbles said softly. Boomer smiled weakly back at her, and she could almost see the sun rising in his glistening eyes. She slowly inched her hand towards his, and then patted it gently. Boomer gasped. As their skin touched, he could swear he felt energy, like some kind of sparks, shoot from her into him. He stared at up her, his eyes wide with wonder. Bubbles smiled again.

About a week later, the boys were out of the lab and walking around, thanks to Professor giving them a few doses of Chemical X. The doses had helped their injuries heal fast, but it hadn't renewed their powers, which puzzled the Professor.

"I just don't understand it!" Professor had announced one day. "That Chemical X should have given you superpowers again, but nothing happened! It's almost as if some strange outside force is keeping you from getting your powers back again!"

"Dad." all three boys had whispered at the same time.

"Sorry?"

"Oh nothing…" Brick had said quickly, kicking at the carpet under his feet.

One quiet night, the boys were sleeping on the couch in the living room. Butch was snoring peacefully, and Boomer tossed and turned, a happy smile on his face. But Brick stayed awake, his scarlet eyes staring into the dark. He scanned the dim shadows nervously, almost afraid that the girls were going to jump at him out of nowhere and attack him. He still didn't trust them. _They aren't our friends…_ He thought. _They're our enemies. We were created to be __**their**__ enemies. They're going to ambush us one day and destroy us, I know it._ As images of the girls beating him and his brothers to a pulp raced across his mind, he began to shudder and cold sweat broke out on his face. He wiped it away, breathing heavily, and decided to get a drink of water to cool himself down. The red Ruff pulled his new red baseball cap onto his head, shakily got out of bed, and began to tiptoe across the room. His long red ponytail stuck to his sweaty legs as he walked, and every creak of the floor made him sweat more. He crept down the dark hall, heading towards the bathroom, his senses keen and alert. As he surveyed the inky blackness for any sign of movement, he couldn't help but feel helpless and alone, weak without his superpowers. _Dad's right…_ he thought. _I __**am**__ worthless and pathetic. _

Suddenly he heard a rustling noise and froze in horror. The redheaded boy frantically looked around, but he didn't see anyone. Breathing rapidly and his heart pounding like a hammer, he stealthily continued to creep toward the bathroom, sweating so much that it was practically dripping off his face. Then he heard it again, a low, faint rustling noise, but it was louder than before. Then he heard tapping sounds approaching him, getting louder and louder. He tried to run, but he was frozen in terror. Suddenly he was seized from behind with backbreaking force and shoved to the ground. The horrified boy tried to scream, but something was covering his mouth. He struggled in vain as his arms were pulled behind his back and held tightly. Then a blinding white light blasted him in the face, and he squeezed his eyes shut. Once his eyes adjusted, he could see a pair of rose colored eyes staring down at him. It was Blossom, shining a flashlight in his face. She gasped in shock when she saw who she had by the collar. She quickly let go of Brick and he fell onto the floor; the two redheads stared at each other for a second in shocked silence.

"Brick!" Blossom said breathlessly. "What're you doing?!"

"Why'd you grab me?" Brick demanded, pulling himself to his feet.

"I didn't know it was you! I thought you were a crook or something that was robbing the house! So, what were you doing?!"

"I…I was getting a drink, that's all…"

Blossom looked at his face, which was shining with cold sweat.

"Brick, what happened, did you have too many blankets or…."

Brick nervously tired to wipe the sweat off his face, and he was still shaking with fear.

"Did you have a bad dream?" Blossom asked. Brick shook his head quickly.

"I'm just gonna get back to bed now…" he said softly, and he made an attempt to slip past Blossom, but she stepped in front of him.

"No, it's ok!" the Pink eyed Puff said. "You can get a drink if you want! C'mon, I'll come with you."

She scampered off to the bathroom with her lacy nightgown flying behind her, and Brick followed, looking down at his red tank top and shorts that he used for pajamas. When he came through the bathroom door, Blossom was standing on the counter, filling up one of her pink paper cups with water from the faucet. Then she flew down and handed the cup to Brick, who gulped it down thirstily. After he was done, he wiped some more sweat off his face. Blossom noticed, soaked one of her pink washcloths, and gave it to Brick to wash his face with. He took it gratefully and wiped himself down.

"Is that better?"

"Yeah."

"That must have been some dream you had." Blossom continued. "I'm glad you're ok. And I'm sorry I grabbed you."

Brick stared at Blossom in surprise. He had never been treated like this in his life. He searched her rosy eyes and wondered why she calmed him, when the thought of her and her sisters attacking him had been what had scared him silly in the first place.

"What?" Blossom had noticed how Brick was staring at her. Brick's face flushed a deep scarlet color and he quickly diverted his gaze.

"I…I…I'm going to bed now…" the red Ruff murmured quickly, before he shoved the wet washcloth back in her hand and made a dash for the door. But Blossom was too quick for him; she caught his hand before he could leave.

"Wait!" she cried. "Brick!"

Brick let out a little gasp of surprise. When her hand had touched his, he had felt a little shock, like the one you get when you rub your hands on the carpet, and then touch metal. He stared at her, his ruby eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. Blossom stared back at him, still holding his hand and wondering why he was acting so weird. Brick slipped his still sweaty hand out of hers and dashed down into the dark hall in a panic, his long red ponytail swishing behind him.

"Brick?" Blossom said softly. There was no answer.

A few days later, Butch was roaming the house, ecstatic over the healing of his legs, so he could run around again. The emerald eyed Ruff felt ready to give himself a sugar rush, one of favorite things to do. He bolted over to the fridge and used all his strength to push open the door, looking for something sugary. He groaned in dismay when he saw that there was a liter bottle of Coke, but it was on the top shelf, far out of his reach. He jumped up and down, trying to reach it, but that barely helped at all.

"Why'm I so stinking' short?!" Butch growled, kicking the fridge in rage. But fridges aren't exactly soft, so he grabbed his foot in pain and began to hop around, shouting: "Ow, ow, ow, ow, OWW!!"

Then he tripped on the rug and went sprawling over the floor, whacking his head hard on the cabinet doors next to the fridge. He groaned dizzily and tried to get up, but he lost his balance and fell over again, this time hitting his funny bone on the hard tile floor. He cried out in pain and clutched his elbow, his eyes watering. Just then, Buttercup flew into the room; she had heard all the banging and went to check it out. She crossed her arms when she saw Butch on the floor, whimpering in pain.

"What are you doing?!" the green Puff said. "Practicing your dance moves?!"

"No…" Butch replied, gingerly getting to his feet.

"Then what **are** you doing?"

Butch pointed at the soda bottle up in the fridge.

"I want it!!" he whined. "But I can't get it!"

"That's all?! Here…"

Buttercup zipped over, grabbed the Coke and handed it to Butch, who snatched it greedily, while sticking his tongue out and panting like a dog. Then he unscrewed the cap and began to pour the soda down his throat while Buttercup stared at his amazingly uncivilized way of eating that was even worse than her. Unfortunately for Butch, some of the Coke that he was guzzling went down the wrong hole; he retched violently and dropped the whole bottle onto the floor. At first Buttercup thought he was faking, but when his face turned blue and he dropped to the floor, she freaked out.

"Holy…!" she said as she grabbed the choking Ruff by the collar and began to whack him in the back, like you would with a choking baby. But it didn't work and Butch's eyes began to roll in his head, still coughing up a storm and struggling to suck in some air. Buttercup gasped, and then gave him her hardest punch yet; it hit his back with a deafening thump. Some Coke flew out of Butch's mouth and he coughed and gasped in air like a fish out of water. Buttercup continued to pat his back as he regained his breath. After his breathing was restored, Butch stared at Buttercup in horror. She was holding him around the waist, one hand still patting his back. The green Puff's face suddenly flushed a deep red color and she immediately dropped Butch, sending him crashing to the ground.

"Oh my God, **oh my GOD**…" she panted as Butch got to his feet, still staring at her with his deep emerald eyes. "I didn't mean to, I swear!"

"You saved me…" Butch said quietly, looking at her curiously. "I thought you didn't like me."

"Wh…" Buttercup stuttered, horrified at herself. But she stared into his eyes. No matter how crazy and demented he may be, he had nice eyes. The black haired Puff began to slap herself in the face, hating herself for feeling a connection with the Rowdyruff boy. Butch continued to stare at her, standing in a big puddle of Coke. Buttercup screamed in dismay, then she planted her hands on Butch's chest and pushed him into the Coke puddle on his rear, then she zipped out of the room like a comet. He stared after her and felt his chest where she'd touched it, ignoring the Coke that was seeping into his pants. He had felt a little zap when she had touched him, like a little energy blast. He stared at his reflection in the Coke puddle, questions clouding his mind like fog in the Townsville harbor.

One evening, a few weeks later, the girls were working on homework at the kitchen table and the boys were silently sitting together in the bedroom. They were just staring, not saying anything.

"Brick?" Boomer said, breaking the silence.

"What? Will you stop bugging me?" the red Ruff spat.

"Did you…? ...when the girls…"

"Shut up." Brick said. "I don't want to talk about the girls."

He was actually freaked out about the connection he had felt with Blossom, and didn't want to bring it up because it made him stress out.

"Did Blossom ever touch you and…?" Butch interrupted. Brick's face turned bright red.

"SHUT UP!" he yelled. Then he thrust himself on the bed and curled into a ball.

"Didn't you feel a little shock, Brick?" Boomer asked softly. "I did."

"I did too." Butch said. "It was weird."

Brick squeezed his knees and pressed his face into them so hard that he began to feel numb.

"Brick?" Butch said.

Brick squeezed his eyes shut; hot tears began to flow out of them. He started to sob quietly, and his brothers heard. Boomer and Butch stared at their shaking, redheaded brother, not ever seeing this kind of behavior from him before. Butch touched Brick's side sympathetically.

"Dude…What's wrong?" he questioned. Brick sat up quickly and wiped the tears from his face; his cheeks and crimson eyes remained shining.

"It's not right…" the red Ruff said finally. "…These weird connections we feel towards the girls; it's twisted. They're good guys, we're not."

"But they haven't done anything to us." Boomer said quietly. "They saved us."

"They haven't done anything to us **yet**." Brick spat. "They're gonna ambush one day and beat us to pulp, you'll see."

"But it's almost been a month since they took us in." Butch pointed out. "If they wanted to whip our butts, why didn't they get it over with by now?"

Brick didn't reply; he just stared at the bedspread on the girls' bed that he and his brothers were sitting on, a tear escaping his eye and trickling down his cheek.

"We can't trust them, guys…" the Ruff leader insisted. "They're our sworn enemies for God's sake! We've gotta leave this joint and go back to Dad. We can trust him for sure; he recreated us after all."

"But we'll never get outta here." Butch said. "We don't have any superpowers."

"We will in a few minutes. Our month in Townsville without our powers is almost up. Once we have them, no one can stop us from leaving."

"But don't you like it here?" Boomer pleaded. "Nobody's ever treated me the way the girls do."

Brick glared at his blue eyed brother, his scarlet eyes flashing menacingly.

"It's all fake." Brick said. Then he aimed a punch at Boomer, and to everyone's surprise, it knocked him clear off the bed. Brick grinned triumphantly at his fist.

"Our powers are back." He said. "C'mon, let's ditch this joint."

Without another word, he zipped out the window in a flash of red. His brothers took one last look at the bedroom, and then they followed. The three brothers flew in silence across the dark night sky, heading back to their father's domain. Brick noticed both Boomer and Butch looking longingly back at the Utonium house, and he sighed.

"Guys, stop it." The Ruff leader commanded. "We can't stay with them. It can't be that way, it just can't. Hurry up, or Dad'll be mad at us for being late." He zoomed off like a torpedo, streaking even faster through the cool night air. Butch and Boomer looked at each other, than they rushed off to keep up with him.


	4. Betrayed

Him was relaxing in his domain: Hell. As the ruler of Hell, he was probably the only one who could ever relax in it. He was watching the news on his new flat screen TV, and enjoying the absence of his three little sons. He munched on butter popcorn, seated comfortably in his red easy chair, smiling as he watched an alert on the news about an earthquake in Argentina that had killed a few people.

"I **love** these reports!" Him exclaimed in his weird feminine voice. "They make me so… happy. And not to mention, the absence of those stupid little Rowdyruff Boys seems to be doing wonders for my nerves. I should have gotten rid of those little brats **ages** ago. They were useless anyway. I just wish I could've been there when the Powerpuff Girls beat their ungrateful little butts to microscopic pieces. Seeing them explode into rubble would have been amusing."

He snickered to himself and continued to crunch his popcorn and stare at the TV, flipping the channel to another news report about a violent murder. He broke into laughter as he looked at the pictures of the crime scene, with blood all over the floor and police officers looking puzzled.

"Those **losers**!" he snickered gleefully. After watching enough of that, he switched to another channel to make fun of some firefighters who were trying to contain a raging blaze in Southern California. After making smart remarks about some politicians, detectives, and soldiers, Him sank into his easy chair, giggling cruelly.

"This **is** the life!" he said triumphantly, putting his legs up on the arm of his chair. "I guess those pathetic Powerpuff Girls **are** good for something after all."

He went into another fit of giggles for a few minutes, then he popped open a beer and continued to munch his popcorn, while switching the channel to watch a report on a jewelry store robbery.

Just then, Him heard a zooming sound; a familiar sound of something flying through the air at blinding speed.

"Stupid Powerpuff brats…" he mumbled, before turning up the volume on his TV until it couldn't go any louder. He took a swig of beer and snickered at the TV again. The zooming sound outside kept getting louder and louder until even the blaring TV couldn't block it out. Him got to his feet in rage.

"What in…"

He was cut off by a deafening crash, and his wall was shattered like a block tower. Him shrieked and basted the falling rubble away from him, his TV, and his easy chair. Once the caving in of the wall was done, Him's eyes burned in ruthless rage.

"Who **dares**…?!" Suddenly Him gasped when he saw who was standing in front of him, in the remains of his wall. His eyes widened in shock and he shook his head in disbelief.

"It cannot be…" he said.

At the Utonium house…

The Powerpuff Girls were finishing up their spelling worksheets that they had for homework. Buttercup angrily shoved her paper away.

"I'm glad that crap's finally done! I HATE homework!!" the green Puff complained. "Those Rowdyruff Boys are so lucky that **they** never had to go to school!"

"Now, Buttercup," Blossom scolded. "Education is one of the best things a kid can have. It enriches your mind."

"Sure. Doing loads of homework on useless topics **really** enriches your mind. I think it kills off **my** brain cells."

"Oh, please, Buttercup. Do you **want** to end up like Boomer?"

"Don't make fun of him!" Bubbles burst out.

"Oh yeah, he's your boyfriend. I can see why you make such a good pair." Buttercup spat, gesturing towards Bubbles' spelling worksheet, where she had been struggling to spell the word "cookie." Bubbles' mouth trembled, then she began to bawl like a two year old, tears streaming down her face like water from a hose.

"Buttercup, Bubbles, CUT IT OUT!" Blossom screeched. They ignored their red haired sister completely; Bubbles continued to wail while Buttercup yelled at her to shut her face.

"That's it!" Bubbles sobbed, wiping tears off her face. "I'm gonna tell Boomer what you guys said about him!"

She bolted up the stairs, still sobbing, with Blossom and Buttercup chasing after her.

"Stop, stop, stop, STOP!" Blossom screamed hysterically, wringing her hands in the air as she followed her sisters up to their bedroom, where they had seen the boys last. When the pink Puff caught up with her sisters, she was surprised to see them just standing at the door of their bedroom, just staring.

"What…? What's going on?" Blossom walked up to her sisters questioningly.

Neither one of them said a word; they just pointed into the room in shocked silence. Blossom looked through the doorway, feeling rather silly, when she let out a gasp of horror.

The room was empty. There was no sign of the boys anywhere.

"Wh...WHERE DID THEY GO?!" Blossom screamed. She zoomed around the room in a wild pink blur, searching everywhere she could think of. Bubbles dropped onto the floor, sobbing, and Buttercup just stared. The green Puff bent down and picked up a crunched soda bottle off the floor, and her stomach gave a great lurch. Blossom dropped the alarm clock she had been looking under, and turned to her sisters frantically.

"They're not here!" she hollered. "Search the house!"

The redheaded girl zipped down the stairs like a comet and began to trash the rest of the house, desperately looking for the boys. Bubbles and Buttercup glanced uneasily at each other, not having seen their sister act so nuts before, but they helped her rummage around the house, trying to find a trace of the boys.

Blossom wasn't thinking straight; she continued to destroy the house, smashing, zapping, and hurling the furniture around the rooms. But as hard as she tried, she couldn't find any sign of the boys; no trail, no evidence, no nothing. The redheaded Puff burst into the bathroom and threw open the cabinets, tearing off the doors in the process. She then began to chuck things out and fling them across the room; most of them landing in the toilet. She looked every possible place she could think of; under her tooth brushing cup, inside her tube of minty fresh toothpaste, under a pile of her pink washcloths, even down the drain of the sink. Once she had torn up the bathroom, leaving it looking like a tornado had just swept through, she continued on to every other room of the house, in her state of horrified insanity. Buttercup and Bubbles watched their sister in astonishment as she stuck her head in the dryer and began to wildly lob various articles of clothing from it. They'd seen Blossom lose her cool before, but never this bad. Bubbles and Buttercup floated slowly out of the laundry room and turned to face each other.

"I guess we should look too?" Bubbles said softly.

"Yeah…" Buttercup stared, transfixed, at the ceiling, still bewildered at the eccentric behavior of her redheaded sister. "But try not to tear up the house like Blossom. I have a feeling that the Professor won't be too happy when he comes home from his grocery shopping trip."

"She sure is acting funny…" Bubbles said. "…Blossom… I've never seen her do that before."

Buttercup shook her head disbelievingly.

"I know. I think we'd better leave her alone for now."

Bubbles nodded in consent, and the two sisters flew off to search different parts of the house, both far away from Blossom.

Back in the laundry room…

Blossom had thoroughly trashed the laundry room, having finished looking in the bottles of laundry detergent for the boys. She flew around in wild circles for a second, and then she collapsed to the ground with a choked sob. Lying on the ground, she let her long red ponytail drape over her face like a curtain, while sobbing uncontrollably like a newborn baby. As the hot tears streamed down her face, she felt the darkness of despair close over her. The boys were gone. Brick was gone. The image of the red Rowdyruff Boy in her mind made her cry harder, her tears forming puddles on the ground. She didn't want him to be gone; she felt a strange attraction to him, he needed her. She needed him. She never imagined that she would ever feel this way towards one of her worst enemies, but she did. He was like her fragile friend that she had to protect, no matter what. And now, he was gone, and she couldn't watch over him anymore. She lay on the ground in a heap, remembering how much he had reminded her of herself, and her desire to gain him as an ally, as a friend. _Why did he run away…?_ she thought, more tears flowing out of her eyes and staining her cheeks. _Did he hate me? I tried to be friends… _

Then she remembered that night, that night when she had mistaken him for a robber and attacked him, and how much that had horrified him. Her rosy eyes stared straight ahead in shock as she remember every detail of that night; the sweat that had coated Brick's body, how he had pulled away from her and ran away when she had caught his hand, and how terrified of her he had seemed the whole time. Blossom bolted upright, her head full of memories from that night. He had seemed so **scared**, almost paralyzed with terror… A sudden realization came to the pink Puff. _It was my fault…_ she thought frantically. _If I hadn't scared the living daylights out of him that night, maybe he would've never run away. I should've been more careful; should've checked for sure that it was a bandit I heard before I attacked. How could I have been so __**stupid**__…?! _

Blossom wiped the tears off her cheeks, lifted her hair off her face, and smoothed it back into her usual neat ponytail. Then she got to her feet, brushed off her dress, and stared out the window of the laundry room, her face determined.

"I'll find him…" she said out loud, her mouth trembling. "I'll find him and apologize; he's got to come back. They all have to come back."

Her connection, her bond, that had developed between her and Brick, burned inside her, stronger than she had ever felt it. Her eyes narrowed in determination, her tearstained cheeks shining and her hands clenching into fists.

"I'll find him…"

She stood like a statue for a second, staring at the twinkling stars that shone in the Townsville night sky, then she turned on her heel and strode bravely out of the room to find her sisters, more determined then she had ever been in her whole life.

Back in Hell…

Him was astonished to discover who had just crashed through his wall; so astonished that he just stood there in shock, his eyes wide and staring. Standing there in the rubble was none other than the Rowdyruff Boys, his sons that he believed to be dead, destroyed by the Powerpuff Girls. But whatever Him believed, there the three boys stood, looking just as rowdy, powerful, and ready to fight as ever.

"Hey, daddy-o!" Brick broke the silence. "We're back and ready to kick some Powerpuff butt! What's your new plan?"

Him continued to stare, not saying a word.

"Pops…" Butch said, twitching impatiently. "I wanna fight! What's we gonna do next?"

Him remained silent.

"Daddy…" Boomer said. "Aren't you happy we're back? The Powerpuff Girls never beated us up; we didn't get destroyed."

Again, Him didn't reply, so the boys and their father just stood, staring at each other in silence. Flames of rage ignited in Him's body as he continued to stare at his sons, whom he despised so much. _How could those stupid little brats still be alive!?..._ Him thought furiously. _They were left in Townsville for a month, powerless and critically injured, practically sitting targets for those pathetic Powerpuff Girls. And those girls still failed to destroy them?!! How can this be…!? It's impossible!! _

Him's shocked expression slowly converted into one of unfathomable wrath, his hatred of his sons building up inside of him like steam in a tea kettle that was about to boil over. How he loathed those three little boys, those empty headed, ungrateful, immature little boys. They had failed him so many times that he had attempted to destroy them indirectly, but he had failed. Suddenly, the hatred inside of him boiled over, and he exploded like Mount St. Helens.

"YOU STUPID, WRETCHED, LITTLE **RATS**!!" Him screeched, his eyes literally aflame with fury. The boys were dumbstruck at their father's response, and they took a step back. Brick was nearly trembling like an earthquake; he had been sure that his father would cheer them when they returned, congratulating them for evading destruction by the Powerpuff Girls. But he couldn't have been more wrong.

"WHY MUST YOU THREE **ALWAYS** AVOID DESTRUCTION, RUINING MY OTHERWISE PERFECT LIFE?!!" Him was swelling as he ranted and raved, growing and growing so that he loomed over the heads of the boys.

"You wanted to **destroy** us?" Boomer asked softly, shaking as tears welled up in his deep blue eyes.

"WHAT DO YOU **THINK**, YOU DIMWITTED BOY?!" Him shrieked, whacking Boomer with his giant claw; the little blond boy screamed in horror as he crashed into the floor with devastating force. "YOU PATHETIC BOYS HAVE FAILED ME SO MANY TIMES AFTER I RESURRECTED YOU THAT I COULD CARE **LESS **WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU!! IN FACT, I AM GOING TO END YOUR STUPID LITTLE LIVES RIGHT **NOW**!!"

The Rowdyruff Boys gasped in terror, cowering in the fiery glares of their enraged father.

"You pathetic **cowards…**" Him hissed. "You could **never** be good villains. Even on the verge of death you tremble and cry like babies…You should have seen this coming. I don't know what you were expecting… a welcome party perhaps?"

Brick tried to gulp, but his mouth had gone as dry as the Sahara Desert. All he could do was stand like a statue, his scarlet eyes wide in horror, waiting to be slaughtered by his own father, the one person he had been sure he could trust…

Him scanned his terrified sons with a snarl on his face that looked capable of melting steel. If looks could kill, this one would make you drop dead in less than a second.

"Let's see…Which one of you should I finish off first?" Him said this just as casually as if he were picking which of his novels to start on first. Him's burning stare landed on Brick, who felt as if he would faint. "The leader is always first… That sounds fair."

Him suddenly lost all casual style and lunged for the Ruff leader like a wild tiger on the hunt. Brick screamed in horror as he was seized tightly around the waist by his father's giant red claw. Boomer and Butch dived frantically out of the way as Him's giant body came crashing down, shaking the ground like a 9.0 earthquake. Him held his terrified little son up to his face and cackled cruelly. Brick struggled with all his might, but he couldn't budge; the claw squeezed his waist like a 12 foot anaconda snake. Sweat broke out on his forehead as he thrashed around wildly, trying to push himself free with his hands. Him just gave his fighting son an extremely bored look and waved his other claw. Brick's shrieks tore through his brothers like a dagger as he thrashed around in horrible pain that burned his bones like a relentless firestorm. His eyes where nearly popping out of his head as he screamed; he had never felt this much pain in his life. He wanted it to end… He wanted to die…

And then it was gone. Brick slumped over weakly, gasping with big, shuddering breaths, sweat pouring down his face, which was still screwed up in agony. He stared up at his father with his petrified doe eyes, as wide as moons. Him chuckled and squeezed his son tighter, the sharp claws cutting into the redheaded boy's flesh.

"Did you think I'd give you a quick easy end?" Him asked incredulously, still chucking his girly chuckle with relish. Brick didn't have time to answer; his father began slamming him against the wall before he had a chance to set his racing mind straight. Boomer sank to the floor sobbing, and Butch stood motionless in shock, watching their brother get beaten to death before their eyes. But there was nothing they could do. They had no power to stand up to their father.

For Brick, there was no time to think at all. There was just pain, pain, and more pain. He screamed again, again, and again, in horrible, helpless agony. He hardly felt the blood running down his sides, or anything else. Just his father's blows… again… again… again…

Then it stopped. Brick lay there like rag doll in the claw, too beaten to hold himself upright. He gazed at his father, who was smirking down at him, through his half closed, crimson eyes.

"All right, that's good enough…" Him said triumphantly. He reached over with his other claw and closed it around Brick's upper body. (Where his neck would be; if he had one) Brick just lay there as the claw tightened around his upper body; too beaten to move.

_This is it…_ he thought. _He's gonna snap my head off… I wish I would've listened…_

What happened next occurred way too fast for Brick's mind to comprehend. The claw around his upper body was about to snap closed and sever his head like a guillotine… when all of a sudden, there was a bright flash of light; almost rosy in color. He wasn't quite sure with his blurred vision. Then, the claws were gone; there was no more pressure cutting into his waist or his chest. He was now being carried, by something a lot more soft and gentle than the claws of his father. He blinked slowly, trying to make out the shocked face that was staring at him; two rosy eyes came into focus.

"Blossom…?" he said weakly. It was Blossom all right; she held his battered body against hers, the blood from his injured waist drenching her hands. She stared at him in shock; her cheeks were streaked with tearstains, to his surprise. Bubbles and Buttercup swooped down as well and grabbed their counterparts before Him could react. All six kids zipped out of the roof, leaving Him in a state of extreme bafflement.

The Girls landed on the roof of Malph's grocery store in Townville, carefully setting the boys on their feet. Blossom laid Brick down as gently as if he was a fragile glass vase, but even so, he whimpered in pain as his body touched the ground. Blossom stooped over him and smoothed his tangled hair, shaking her head, her eyes brimming with tears. He stared up at her, shocked at her tender touch. She wiped a tear away that trickled down her cheek.

"He was doing it the whole time…" she said softly. Brick stared at her in bewildered silence. "**He** was the one beating you like this…your own dad…"

The rest of her words were choked out by tears; she continued to stroke Brick's head as she cried, some of the tears splashing down on his body. They sat there like that for a while, and then Brick finally spoke up.

"You… you care about me?" he asked softly. Blossom looked at him, her rosy eyes wide and shining with tears.

"Of **course** I care about you…" she replied. "I tried to be your friend… I wanted to be your friend… but I thought you hated me…"

"I thought **you** hated **me**. I was… I was terrified that you guys were going to jump out and beat me to a pulp when we were staying at your house."

"But that was your dad. We really tried to be nice to you." Blossom twirled some of Brick's hair, that was so similar to her own, around her hand gently as she spoke.

"I know…" Brick said softly. "But I thought you were pretending… I'm so **stupid**…"

"Well, trust us now…" Blossom said. Brick stared at her; she stared at him. She inched her hand toward his and caught it gently. This time Brick didn't pull away; he let her squeeze it in hers and hold it up to her face. He lay there calmly and searched her glistening eyes, letting himself be calmed by them. No other person had treated him this way, or made him feel this way… She gazed into his ruby red eyes. Even though he was beaten nearly to death, she still was attracted to his beautiful eyes. She gave him a weak smile and squeezed his hand tenderly in hers. He gave her a small grin in return.

Suddenly she felt something strange in her hand that held Brick's; a tingling, fuzzy feeling. Brick felt it too, and his eyes widened in shock. The sparks that he had felt before (when Blossom had attacked him that one night) crackled between his hand and Blossom's, like tiny pink and red bolts of static electricity. A soft glow appeared there as well, first faint, but it grew brighter and brighter until its orb of pink and red glow caught the attention of the other four kids who gasped in amazement. Blossom and Brick stared at their hands, which were now bathed in the pink and red glow; their mouths hung open in shock. Brick tried to pull his hand away, but he found that he couldn't; it was held to Blossom's by some strange force. The pink and red glow that pulsed from their hands exploded into a blinding white flash, temporarily blinding all the kids. When the light began to fade, Boomer, Bubbles, Butch, and Buttercup turned frantically towards the silhouettes of Brick and Blossom, who were still bathed in the shrinking orb of light. When the light had died out completely, all six kids gasped. Brick was now on his feet, glittering with pink sparkles and completely cured of all the injuries he had received in the beating his father had just given him. The stunned red Ruff looked over himself with utter bewilderment and Blossom put her hands up to her mouth in wonder.

"Brick…you're…all better…" Blossom stuttered in astonishment. "But how…?"

Brick shrugged. Blossom smiled radiantly, ran up to the redheaded boy, and threw her arms around him, squeezing him tight against her. He wanted to flinch from this sudden physical contact, but he kept himself still as Blossom hugged him. However, he couldn't stop his face from flushing to a bright crimson color. But he was blissful; he finally felt like someone cared about him, and that person was holding him in a tender hug at that moment.


	5. United

Him's enraged shrieks echoed, through all of Hell, through all of Townsville; even people in China perked their ears up at the sound of faint screams. He had never been this angry before; his sons had escaped his clutches… again. But this time, to his shock, they were rescued by none other than the Powerpuff Girls; their sworn enemies. Flames raged in Hell, the heat was blistering like never before; all products of the wrath of Him, the ruler. He zoomed around Hell, blasting various objects into smithereens, going mad with fury. He hurled bolts of red hot plasma around his domain; blowing things into bits and terrorizing the souls of the damned. His anger knew no limits; he could not think straight, for his three little sons had survived his rage yet again. No one he was desperate to kill had ever lived, with the exception of the Powerpuff Girls. The Powerpuff Girls…

Him screeched in a fresh wave of fury and blasted another bolt of red hot energy into the blistering abyss of Hell. Finally, Him collapsed into his easy chair, panting heavily, his body still burning with rage. Those girls were the ones that had foiled the whole thing. He growled in determination and narrowed his eyes into angry slits. He would kill them… finish off all six of those brats…

Him decided this was the time, the time to attack at his full strength, to tear the Puffs and Ruffs apart. He stood up and raised both of his claws into the air, beckoning all of the hideous powers in Hell. All the heat, all the blistering flames, formed into one writhing fiery mass which descended upon Him, and began to absorb into his body. Him cackled in delight as he grew bigger and bigger and bigger…

Meanwhile…

It was twilight. The crisp evening air of Townsville was still and peaceful, and the lights of the city were twinkling like diamond dust on the ground. Six colored streaks flew across the sky, which was scattered with shimmering stars that pierced the inky darkness like pins. The streaks shot through the evening sky; bolts of ruby red, pink, sky blue, navy blue, emerald green, and light green. The three boys and three girls zipped through the sky, giggling in delight, big smiles shining on their faces. They were very close to each other; Blossom and Brick were actually holding hands. Bubbles and Boomer flew around each other in spirals, laughing in glee, their eyes twinkling like polished gems. Butch and Buttercup were racing, both chucking as they tried to pull ahead of each other.

"I'm gonna beat you, girlie!" Butch shouted at his counterpart, who grinned evilly.

"Oh no you're not, punk!" Buttercup yelled back. "Eat my dust!"

She pulled ahead of Butch, who laughed in disbelief and tried to catch up to her.

Brick and Blossom flew calmly behind, smiling at their delighted siblings.

"You know, I've never seen Buttercup so happy before." Blossom said, squeezing Brick's hand playfully. "I think she really does like him."

Brick nodded, his ruby eyes shining.

"I've never seen Butch like that either; he's always such a crab all the time. I'll have to remember to tease him about it later."

Blossom chuckled.

"Don't bug him **too** much, ok?"

Brick smiled.

"He can't get any more insane then he already is."

"Don't bet on that!" Buttercup shouted at them, her eyes gleaming maliciously. "You haven't seen him drink soda! His manners are even worse than a dog's!"

"Hey!" Butch shouted, chuckling halfheartedly. Buttercup laughed and pulled even farther ahead of him; it seemed that she would definitely win their race now.

Blossom and Brick smiled at each other and flew in silence for a moment.

"I guess it's good that we got together though…" Blossom said. "I never knew we had special powers like that; ones that could only be activated when we're with each other."

"Yeah!" Brick said enthusiastically, flexing his muscles. "It sure cured me all right!"

"I wonder if we have any other powers like that…" Blossom said, smiling. Brick shrugged.

"It would be cool if we did."

Blossom nodded in agreement.

The six kids continued to zoom through the cool Townsville skies, overflowing with glee and having finally satisfied the strong bonds they had felt between each other for a long time. It had opened up a whole new chapter in their lives, a chapter they couldn't wait to begin. They had so much to discover…

Suddenly, the inky blue sky began to distort. It pulsed an eerie red color, and the whole sky slowly began to turn scarlet; like a drop of blood spreading through clear water. The temperature also began to rise at an alarming rate, which should not be happening since it was nighttime. The once crisp night air grew hotter and hotter, like an oven warming up. Boomer noticed how the wind that was blowing in his face was no longer cool, but warm. His cheeks slowly turned pink and sweat started to drip down his face as the hot air buffeted him. He fanned himself uncomfortably and glanced at Bubbles.

"Bubbles?" he asked. "Did you turn the heater on?"

"No... What's happening, Blossom!" the blue eyed Puff squeaked, frantically wiping sweat off of her forehead. Blossom desperately looked around, fanning herself and searching for a source of all this unexpected heat.

"I don't know, Bubbles! I…" Blossom suddenly gasped, cutting herself off, and paused in midair. In the distance, above the Townsville skyline, she had spotted something. It was huge and red; some sort of monster maybe; and it was rising up from the sweltering ground. Everyone had stopped flying and was staring at Blossom now; Brick, Bubbles, Butch, Boomer, and Buttercup, all with puzzled looks on their faces. Blossom soundlessly pointed toward the looming red monster in the distance and everyone spotted it with horror, but they didn't know what it was. Brick activated his telescopic vision to get a better look; the monster was a giant powerfully built devil, with glowing eyes and bulging muscles, surrounded by a scorching ring of dancing flames. Brick gave a shuddering gasp and collapsed toward the ground in a streak of red. Blossom zipped in and caught him before he could hit the ground.

"Brick…What…?" she stuttered, searching the redheaded boy's terrified face with alarm.

He breathed heavily; sweat drenching his face, his ruby eyes staring straight ahead in shock.

"It's… it's **Dad**…" he said softly, and he began to shake like a leaf in Blossom's arms.

Boomer squealed in horror and Butch froze in shock, almost as if he'd been hit with Blossom's ice breath. The girls stared, dumbstruck, at their terrified counterparts. Boomer had actually started to cry; hot tears were rolling down his cheeks.

"No…Not Daddy… HE KILLED BRICK!!" Boomer shrieked in a wave of terrified insanity.

"No, he didn't kill Brick, Brick's right there!" Bubbles said quickly, trying to calm her trembling counterpart.

"He almost did!" Boomer wailed. "He wanted to DESTROY us! DESTROY ALL OF US!!"

"He's not gonna do anything…" Buttercup interrupted. "We'll whip his stupid butt like we always do."

Blossom shook her head.

"What's he done to himself?" she said in disbelief. "I've never seen Him like **that**…"

Suddenly, the hulking devil in the distance swiftly turned in the direction of the six kids, its eyes burning with immeasurable rage. Boomer let out a shriek that seemed too high pitched to have come from him, Butch's mouth dropped open in silent shock, and Brick's shaking body froze like statue.

"GO!!" Blossom screamed, and she zoomed off as fast as she could, still carrying Brick, fleeing away from the massive monster that was Him. All the other kids followed in a panic, except for Boomer, who seemed to be horrified out of his wits. Him let out a fiendish cackle and shot a white hot bolt of energy that hit Boomer dead on. The little blonde boy squealed in agony as he plummeted into the ground in a heap. Bubbles shrieked his name in horror and all five kids froze in midair and turned around.

Boomer lay on the asphalt road, his body burning in pain; the blast was incredibly powerful. And then, Him was upon him, looming over his singed body and chucking evilly. Boomer let out a whimper, and tried to drag himself back on his feet, but he was too drained of strength to even sit up. Through his half closed eyes, he saw his father shoot another blast at him with relish; Boomer did the first thing he could think of. He raised his hands in front of him and activated his special force field, a glowing blue orb that circled him protectively. The blast hit the force field with such force that Boomer grunted and was shoved further into the pavement. He gritted his teeth and pushed his force field as hard as he could; it let out a blorping sound and grew brighter and slightly larger. But his arms ached, sweat poured down his pink face, and he started to groan; the blast was too powerful for him to hold off for much longer.

Just as Him smirked and was about to raise the strength of his beam to finish off the blonde Rowdyruff Boy, a sky blue streak zipped toward the ground, straight for Boomer. Bubbles landed beside him and let out a burst of energy from her hands at Him, who was thrown off balance and stopped blasting at Boomer, whose force field had just flickered and died. The blonde Puff grabbed Boomer's hand and yanked him out of harm's way, leading him back to the others, who then zoomed off and away from Him. Him growled in frustration and lumbered after them, his crimson eyes blazing.

The six super powered kids zipped away in bolts of red, pink, sky blue, navy blue, light green, and dark green, and then they landed behind a tall restaurant building , trying to hide from Him. They couched on the cement on their knees and huddled together.

"Ok," Blossom said breathlessly. "Him's obviously not too happy with any of us right now. Does anyone know what he did to himself?"

Butch raised his hand in the air and shook it around.

"I know, I know, I know!" he exclaimed. "Dad threatened it to me once when I was stealin' all of his cola. That's his true form; with all of his powers and everything. If you thought he was tough before; wow, he'll **really** kick your ass now!"

Blossom surprised everyone by not lecturing him for his use of colorful language.

"His true form?" she gasped. "This could be a bigger problem than I…"

Suddenly, the restaurant they were hiding behind was blasted apart with an earsplitting crash; all six kids cried out in surprise and dove out of the way before they could be crushed by the falling rubble. They quickly hopped to their feet and turned to face Him, who was grinning cruelly at them. He leapt into attack mode almost instantly, throwing his claw fiercely at Buttercup in an attempted punch. She just barely dodged it and tried to kick the claw, but missed as well. She growled angrily and gave Him one of her well practiced, spectacular punches, which hit him on the knee. This barely seemed to faze Him at all; he smirked and hit her in the face with a sharp kick, and she went flying into the wall of a nearby apartment complex. As Buttercup shakily got to her feet, Butch turned on his father with an expression of pure fury and sent a bolt of green energy at him. Him just chuckled and used a force field of his own to easily deflect it. The devil aimed a punch at the green eyed Ruff, which was knocked off course by a kick from Blossom. Him sneered and swung his claw around wildly, this time hitting both Butch and Buttercup, who were smashed down into the ground with incredible force. Brick tried to hit Him with a blast from his eye beams, but Him caught his redheaded son off guard and crushed him with his pointed boot, grinding him furiously into the pavement. Blossom zipped down to assist, but she was hit with a roundhouse kick from Him that sent her, Bubbles, and Boomer plummeting into the ground.

"This isn't working!" Bubbles squealed, picking herself up from the floor of the crater that she, Boomer, and Blossom had created from their impact with the ground. "Him's too powerful for us to beat!"

Boomer nodded and brushed off his tattered shirt.

Blossom never had time to answer; Him slammed his claw on top of the crater that they were in and it began to collapse on top of them. Bubbles shrieked and grabbed onto Boomer in terror. But when her hand caught his, a burst of blue energy shot from their joined hands and literally knocked Him's claw away, it was so strong. The two blondes just stared at each other for a second, then they smiled; they had discovered another new power.

Buttercup and Butch, who were floating in the air side by side and had seen the whole thing, grinned evilly at each other and joined hands, sending another strong bolt of energy at Him, who stumbled at the impact of a much stronger force then he had expected. Blossom, Bubbles, and Boomer quickly zoomed out of the crater and swooped over Him, paired up by couples and blasting him with their newly discovered power. Blossom, counting on the others to keep the devil busy, zipped down to help Brick, who was still being crushed into the ground by Him's sharp boot. She gave Him's foot the hardest punch she could manage, and to her relief, it exposed the head of Brick, who was struggling furiously to push the giant foot off of him. He immediately noticed the light and looked up in surprise, his eyes wide. Blossom made her move; she zipped down and seized him under the armpits, pulling him free. They both soared away from Him as fast as they could. Once they were a good distance away, Blossom seized one of Brick's hands in hers and aimed their joined hands toward Him. A bolt of magenta energy burst from their hands and struck the giant devil in the head. Blossom clenched her other hand into a triumphant fist and grinned.

Brick stared at her with a blank face; Blossom noticed and chuckled.

"New power." She explained quickly. She brushed some grit off of Brick's cheek and smiled. He smirked happily and grabbed her hand, sending another blast of energy at his father.

Him, who was being pelted with double blasts from three couples, definitely wasn't doing as well as he had been in the very beginning of the fight. The blasts were throwing him off balance and were beginning to wear him down. He gritted his teeth angrily.

_Those brats!_ He though furiously. _I'll have to unleash more power than I thought._

He joined his claws together and they began to glow an ominous red color. He then raised them over his head and shot a bolt of fire at Brick and Blossom, who happened to be the closest. Blossom felt the searing heat zoom at her, and she quickly countered the blast with a burst of her ice breath. But it wasn't strong enough; it evaporated into steam as it met the scalding jet of flames. The redheaded Puff screamed and shoved Brick out of the way, then tried to do the same for herself, but she wasn't fast enough. Brick, Bubbles, Boomer, Butch, and Buttercup watched in horrified silence as the Puff leader was hit dead on with the smoldering, scorching, blast of pure Hellish flare. She screamed in agony and thrashed around wildly, her rosy eyes wide open in horror. Him cackled in triumph and increased the intensity of his blast; Blossom's terrified cries of anguish grew louder and louder, and she writhed like a snake. The fire burnt her bones, scorched her very being…

Brick stared in shocked silence, watching his father torturing his new best friend just like he had tortured the red Ruff himself. It couldn't happen… not again…

Brick let out an almost unearthly scream of rage and zoomed toward his father, his features burning with incalculable wrath. He socked the huge devil in the jaw with inconceivable strength; Him's eyes bulged at the impact. He had never felt this much power from his son before, but he did not stop his torment of Blossom, who remained in the fiery grip of his blast, screaming in agony just as before.

"STOP, STOP, **STOP**!!" Brick roared, hitting his father with blow after blow of abnormal strength, his crimson eyes flashing with fury. "DON'T TOUCH HER, YOU BITCH!!! **STOP IT**!!!"

Him finally stopped. He stared up at his raging son in bewilderment as Blossom collapsed limply toward the ground like a rag doll.

"**I'M NOT SCARED OF YOU!!**" Brick screeched, before letting off a blast of red energy from his whole body that struck Him with such force that it knocked him over like a plastic domino. After Him hit the ground with an agonizing crash, Brick zipped down and caught Blossom in his arms before she could hit the ground as well. He stared at her in a panic. She was badly singed all over, and she lay limply in his arms with her eyes closed, as if she wasn't even alive at all. Brick seized her arm and shook it, but it felt as lifeless as a rubber toy's.

"Blossom…?"

He shook her shoulders, her legs, he even tickled her, calling her name more and more frantically, but she just lay there in silence. "BLOSSOM! BLOSSOM! **BLOSSOM!!**"

All of the other four kids turned to the two redheads in shock, but Him attempted to blast them with another fire ray, so they had to continue their fight. Brick stared down at his battered counterpart; could she be…?

"**NO**!!!" he roared. He didn't have any medical experience, but he didn't care. He thunked his head down on Blossom's chest, trying to hear any signs of life. Then he lifted up his head and pressed his hand to her chest to try to detect a heartbeat; he was shaking and cold sweat broke out on his forehead. His breath left him in one relieved sigh; he felt the very faint, thumping of life against Blossom's ribs. But he started to panic again; her heartbeat and her breathing were slowly and gradually slowing, like a dying battery. His mind raced in terrified circles; he had no clue what to do. He looked frantically toward the others, but they were too engaged in combat against Him to help him at all; they probably wouldn't know anything anyway.

"No… no… **Blossom**…" He shook her shoulders in despair. "Hang on… please…"

Just then, and idea popped into his mind through the fog of hopelessness. He had seen it on TV before; when you breathe air into other people through their mouths to save them from drowning and stuff like that. The red eyed boy looked at Blossom, his mind still racing. He didn't want to touch her, especially not on the mouth with his mouth; that was almost like kissing. He shivered at the thought of kissing Blossom, (he's only 6 years old, after all) but he took a deep breath to calm himself down. _This isn't kissing; it's CPR or something like that._ Brick thought. _And I'm doing it to save her…_ _I've lived through my dad trying to kill me and all this other stuff; I can live through this…_

He took another breath and lightly pressed his mouth to hers, breathing air into her lungs. He pressed and blew a little harder, even though his body was protesting any more physical contact like this. Sweat dripped down his face which had flushed a deep crimson color; but he took another breath and pressed his mouth harder on Blossom's, blowing as much air into her as he could. The pink Puff's heart rate and breathing began to accelerate, flourishing with the extra bursts of oxygen. Blossom began to revive; she let out a little moan and her eyes fluttered open. Her rosy irises or her eyes contracted in horror as she noticed Brick, pressing his mouth harder onto hers with his eyes closed. She let out a little muffled cry; Brick noticed it immediately and opened his eyes to glance at her. When the his gaze met hers, his eyes widened in surprise and he pulled himself away from her until he was sitting three feet away, hiding his burning face in his hair. Blossom pushed herself upright and just stared at him, her mouth hanging open in shock.

"I… I didn't **mean** to!" Brick said quickly, his scarlet cheeks glowing with humiliation. "It's not what it looks like! I was just trying to save you! I…"

Blossom's horrified expression quickly faded into one of shocked sympathy.

"Brick…" she said softly. "It's ok… Come here…"

Brick crawled over to her, still muttering a long stream of apologies and excuses. She put her arms around him and gave him another hug; his face flushed an even deeper red.

"You saved me…No apologies needed." Blossom said gently, leaning even closer to her counterpart's rosy face. Brick suddenly felt a light peck on the cheek and his eyes nearly popped out of his head; Blossom had kissed him on the cheek. Blossom giggled a little as he went cross eyed and collapsed into her lap, staring at her in a daze. She pushed him upright and got to her feet as well. Then she gave him a little smile, grabbed his hand, and zoomed up to rejoin to fight against Him.

A little later…

The fight was nearly at a standstill. Him's fire blasts were countered with double blasts from the couples. Both sides seemed unable to overtake the other. Him was burning in fury and frustration at the unexpected difficulty he was having in destroying he six superpowered kids. He decided it was time for his last effort maneuver, but his most powerful maneuver. He delivered a roundhouse kick that caught the kids off guard, sending them all smashing into the ground. Then he raised his claws into the air, as if beckoning something from the air. All the redness and evil in the sky funneled down into his claws in a crimson stream, as if it were being sucked in with a vacuum. Then, all the red glow was gone from the sky, and Him's claws pulsed with bright red energy; all the energy of Hell. He furiously whipped around to face the six kids in the ground, and shot a great scarlet beam at them, that was so powerful that it rippled the very air as it traveled, where it hit all of the kids dead on. They shrieked and doubled over in agony, the force of the beam tearing them up inside, destroying them, scorching their innards. And then it was gone, leaving them weak and barely conscious, hardly alive. Him cackled in triumph.

"You cannot defeat me!" he sneered heartlessly. "Your powers are no match for mine."

And then he started to charge up for another blast, to finish them off once and for all. Blossom, Boomer, Buttercup, Brick, Bubbles, and Butch watched helplessly; they knew they couldn't survive if they were hit again. They attempted to move out of the way, but they were too weak, drained drastically by the blast. Blossom moaned. It was over, she could tell. So she reached out a feeble hand and caught Brick's, squeezing it tightly. All of the others followed her lead, joining hands with the one next to them until all six kids were linked; they at least wanted to be together when it was done…

But then something happened; small patches of light appeared at the kids' joined hands; pulsing orbs of power. No one noticed them as they expanded, growing bigger, brighter, and stronger; not until they were as bright as searchlights at least. Him froze and the kids watched in shock through their half closed eyes, mesmerized by the glowing light. Then it exploded in a blinding flash of dazzling white, like a giant firework, or a bomb, bathing the whole city in white light. The kids screamed in horror, squeezing their eyes shut and huddling closer together. Him shrieked as he had never shrieked before, as if he were in some kind of unbearable pain.

Suddenly all the light was gone, and the city was silent, strangely silent. All of the kids had fallen unconscious; all except for Blossom, who strained to hold her eyes open as she scanned the area. Him was gone; all that was left of him was some red vapor that was vanishing fast, falling to the ground like ashes. _He's gone…_ was the last thing that passed through Blossom's mind before she slid into darkness.


	6. Epilogue: The Contract

A week later…

"Wheeeeeeee!" Bubbles squealed as she zipped around the girls' room. "I can't believe we destroyed Him! We kicked his butt!"

Blossom smiled. She, Butch, Buttercup, Brick, and Boomer were sitting on the bed, which the Professor had expanded to fit in three more spaces, one red, one dark green, and one navy blue.

"I can't believe we beat Him too." Blossom added, beaming at her sister as well as Brick, who was sitting next to her. "I never thought we'd ever **destroy** Him, that's for sure."

"Yeah, that was awesome!"Buttercup said. "Good thing we heal fast; I didn't think I could stand being in bed for months." Butch bounced up and down on his section of the bed, chewing a candy bar cheerfully.

"Now Dad won't annoy the heck out of us anymore!" Butch exclaimed, grinning and exposing his teeth, which had bits of chocolate stuck between them. Boomer nodded gleefully and hugged his new stuffed giraffe, his sapphire eyes glistening like the sun on the surface of a pond. Brick smiled while rocking back and forth, his arms tightly hugging his knees.

"I'm glad we got rid of him, but I still can't believe we did it." The red Ruff said. "I mean, I couldn't even stand up to him before; none of us could."

Blossom smiled.

"But you did…And at a good time, I might add."

"You rocked, bro." Butch said, grinning. "You kicked Dad's **ass**!"

This time, Blossom turned on him, her eyes flashing fiercely.

"**Butch**!" she scolded. "Don't use that kind of language; we're only six years old! Where on **Earth **did you learn it from?!"

Butch shrugged.

"From Dad…" he replied. "I didn't know it was **bad** or nothin'…Hey, how come you didn't get on my case when we were fighting Dad? I said it then and you didn't even do anything!"

"That was a life threatening situation." Blossom said smartly. "Even **I** am not going to nag you on manners when we're fighting for our lives."

Buttercup snickered a little at this remark.

"You could've fooled me."

Blossom shot her a nasty look that silenced her right away.

"Well come on guys!" the pink Puff said brightly, dropping all signs of unpleasantness in one of her strange mood swings. "I'd promised the Mayor we'd meet him today!"

Everyone looked at each other.

"The Mayor?" Buttercup said. "Why the Mayor? Do we have to go to another one of his 'important town meetings'? All we ever do there is listen to him talk about his personal issues that we'd never want to know in a million years, or maybe his new favorite brand of pickles!"

Blossom's eyes twinkled mischievously.

"I have a little surprise for the boys. C'mon!"

She zipped out of the window in a flash of pink, leaving everyone speechless with confusion.

A bit later, all six kids burst into the Mayor's office; the Mayor had been asleep at his desk and awoke with a cry. He screamed at the sight of the boys.

"AUGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!" he screeched pointing at the boys in terror. "BAD GUYS!! SAVE US POWERPUFF GIRLS!!"

Buttercup rolled her eyes, Blossom and Bubbles tried to stifle their giggles, and all three boys just stared at the Mayor in misunderstanding.

"It's ok, Mayor!" Blossom explained, chuckling. "They're good guys now! They're with us!"

The Mayor leaned down close to Brick, studying the Ruff leader's face suspiciously through his monocle, his nose almost touching the boy's forehead. Brick waved nervously, and the Mayor immediately plopped back down in his chair, all signs of anxiety gone from his expression.

"Ok!" the Mayor said happily. "So they're good boys now!"

"Yes they are." Blossom said, playfully poking Brick in the ribs as she spoke. "Good **superpowered** boys. So, I was going to ask you if they can be superheroes with us."

The boys' mouths all dropped open at exactly the same time.

"US??" the bamboozled boys exclaimed. Blossom laughed.

"Yes, you!" she said. "Do you see any other superpowered boys in this room?"

"I do!" the Mayor shouted, triumphantly waving his hand in the air. "Me, me, me!"

"But…" Brick stuttered.

"We've never done anything heroic before!" Butch hollered.

"Never…" Boomer added.

"Yes you have!" Bubbles beamed. "You fought against your mean old dad! Wasn't that brave?"

"You saved my life!" Blossom continued.

"…and you kicked your dad's butt when you did it!" Buttercup said. "If that isn't heroic, I don't know what is."

The boys remained speechless, just staring at the girls with their mouths hanging open. Then, their bewildered expressions faded into grins of delight.

"Can we?" Boomer said, his eyes gleaming. "Can we **really** be superheroes?"

Blossom nodded slowly, smiling vibrantly.

"You've more than proved yourselves."

"Well, well!" the Mayor exclaimed. "They want to be superheroes! What do I do now?"

"Write up another contract!" Blossom said. "Like the one you made us when we first decided to be superheroes."

The Mayor called in Ms. Bellum, and in no time, a new superhero contract was created.

"So, do you swear to use your powers for good, to protect the city of Townsville and the world?" Ms. Bellum asked the boys, reading the last agreement on the contract.

"Yeah!" they answered together.

"Like heck we do!" Butch added.

"Just sign your names on the dotted line," said Ms. Bellum, handing each boy a pen. "…And you will official allies of the Powerpuff Girls and superheroes of Townsville."

Boomer printed his name very slowly, with shaky, sloppy letters: 'B-o-o-m-e-r'

Brick wrote his name quick and roughly, with jagged spiked letters: 'B-r-i-c-k'

Butch scrawled his down in a mess that looked more like a scribble then a name: 'B-u-t-c-h'

The Mayor stamped the contract with his official seal; so hard that everyone jumped.

"Yipeee!" the Mayor yelled. "Let's have a par-**ty**!!"

He grabbed some pickles from his pickle jar and tossed them in the air like confetti.

"Well," Blossom said, giggling under her breath as she looked at Brick. "I guess we're really friends now."

"Yeah," he said softly. The two redheads looked at each other for a few friendly moments, and then the bank alarm sounded, breaking the silence.

"Well," said Blossom. "Our first mission together. You guys'll do fine…" Brick had started to look a little nervous. "Just listen to my directions and it'll be easy."

The Puff leader took hold of Brick's hand and squeezed it reassuringly; a soft glow pulsed from their joined hands. Then the six kids took off; as one team, finally united, in six colored streaks, zooming for the scene of the crime.

**THE END!!**

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_Thank you, everyone that has read this whole story and reviewed it! I really appreciate it_ _and will be starting a new story soon._ _Until later…_ -CrystalBlossomX


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